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The parliamentary subcommittee on Lands and Forestry has condemned the persistent illegal felling and harvesting of rosewood in the Builsa South District in the Upper East Region and other parts of the country.
It again noted that forest guards had become vulnerable to repetitive
assaults and attacks by illegal chainsaw operators across the country.
The
committee, therefore, recommended that perpetrators of illegal logging
of rosewood should be convicted and sanctioned in accordance with
Regulation (41) of the Timber Resources Management and Legality
Licensing Regulations, 2017 (L.I 2254).
It also called for
immediate measures to be put in place to address the life-threatening
dangers associated with the work of forest guards by amending the
current legislation to allow forest guards to possess arms in the
performance of their duty.
These were some of the observations
contained in the report of the Committee on Lands and Forestry signed by
the committee’s Chairman, Mr Francis Manu-Adabor.
Speaker directs
The
Speaker directed the committee to conduct an enquiry into the illegal
felling and harvesting of rosewood and its attendant destruction of the
environment in the Builsa South District and to make recommendations to
the House.
The directive followed a statement made by the
National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa
South, Dr Clement A. Apaak, drawing the attention of the House to the
illegal felling of rosewood in the savanna zone, especially in Builsa
South, and its effect on the environment.
In order to provide
detailed and concise information on the illegal felling of rosewood in
the Builsa South District, the committee embarked on a fact-finding
visit to Fumbisi and its environs in the Builsa South District to
ascertain the facts.
During the visit, the committee interacted
with key stakeholders, including the Regional Coordinating Council,
Regional Office of the Forestry Commission, district chief executive and
technical staff of the assembly, district forestry officer and some
traditional rulers in the area.
Environmental effect
The
report noted that the Upper East Region was the least endowed in the
area of forest cover, and indicated that the continuous exploitation of
rosewood in the area would pose serious environmental consequences and
deprive the region of its natural resources.
“The quality of soil
will be degraded and eventually affect the production of agricultural
produce. Many animals that depend on the forest for livelihood are also
disadvantaged. Climate change will become inevitable, resulting in
adverse weather patterns which might be characterised by extreme heat or
too much rainfall,” it said.
The committee said the
concentration of illegal logging in the area in the past two years,
which previously occurred only in the off reserves, was beginning to
occur in the reserves as well.
That, it said, was because population of rosewood in the off reserves had dwindled and no longer economically viable.
It,
therefore, called for a concerted effort by all stakeholders, including
civil society, the indigenous people of Builsa South District and law
enforcement agencies to win the fight against the devastating activity
of deforestation.
Alternative source of livelihood
According
to the report, interactions with some of the chiefs of the community
revealed that the lack of alternative sources of livelihood within the
forest communities was a major cause of the illegality.
It noted
that these communities cited within the forest areas were dependent on
the forest for their day-to-day needs, including shelter, food and
firewood for cooking and were, therefore, unable to resist the
enticement of colluding with illegal loggers for monetary gains because
of the economic hardship they found themselves in.
“The committee
was also informed that some permits were issued in the year 2017 to
allow the already lying logs to be salvaged to prevent members of the
community from using them as charcoal,” it said.
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